This is the first year in many that I won’t be spending this weekend at Lollapalooza. As sure as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, so it is guaranteed to rain at least one day of Lolla. So, what a perfect time to show you how I make waterproof festival schedules and maps?

I love that most festivals have stopped handing out paper schedules in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint. As an alternative, they suggest fest-goers to use their phones to access the schedule via the fest’s mobile app. I have a few issues with this:

Even if you are magically able to get service in such a densely populated area, who wants to waste the battery on their phone for checking the schedule?

If it’s raining, even if you’re phone is protected by a waterproof bag, it’s better to keep it safely tucked away

So, here’s the perfect solution… small enough to fit into a fanny pack, large enough to read, and laminated so the rain won’t destroy it.

Supplies

Printed Schedule and/or Map

Glue Stick

Scissors

Self Sealing Laminating Pouches

Hole Punch (if you’re planning to do more than one page)

Key Ring (if you’re planning to do more than one page)

Download and Print the Schedule and/or Map

Most festivals offer a downloadable, printer-friendly version of the schedule on their website. You can download everything for Lollapalooza here.

Just re-size it, making sure it will fit inside your laminating pouches.

Cut

Cut the schedule down to size. It doesn’t have to be perfect… we’ll trim it later.

Glue

Glue together the blank sides of your printed and trimmed schedule so you can fully utilize the front and back of your laminating pouches. Trim any excess overlap.

Laminate

With the pouch open and the adhesive protective film still in place, position your schedule the way you want it to be arranged. This would be a good time to make sure everything is in order and right-side-up.

Then, carefully peel back the protective film and slowly lower the adhesive side. You can push out any air bubbles with a spatula or scraper.

Hole-punch and Assemble

Finally, if your schedule is multiple pages, punch a hole in a corner and thread them all onto a key ring.

Tips for Lollapalooza

Register your wristband and link your credit card to it. Then, you don’t have to get your wallet out every time you want to buy food or drinks… just swipe your wristband and sign!

You can bring in 2 sealed bottles of water per person. If you aren’t bringing in a camelback, do it! The water they sell inside the festival is about $5 per can. Yes, I said can. You won’t be able to purchase a bottle of water, and even if you can, they won’t give you the cap for it. So you won’t be able to stow your bottled water in a bag when you aren’t using it. You’ll be able to refill your bottles at the free water refill stations.

Keep your phone in a waterproof pouch or a little zippered sandwich bag. The touchscreen will still work through the plastic and you won’t get your phone wet.

Use the “Find My Friends” app to find your friends. Even if you don’t have service (you won’t at Lollapalooza), the GPS tracking still works. Just make sure to coordinate ahead of time to make sure everyone has given you access to their location. I used this last year to meet up with someone in the crowd at Perry’s and I almost walked right into her!

Bring a portable phone charger. Even if you’re able to get your phone to last the whole day and night, a friend might not have thought to bring one.

If your portable phone charger is out of juice, and you’re phone is draining battery faster than you’d like, switch it to airplane mode. You can still take photos and videos and your snaps will upload as soon as you find service, again. Just know that the Find My Friends app won’t work when you’re in airplane mode. They also offer locker chargers for a fee if you get desperate.

If you lose your phone, immediately use a friend’s phone to log in to the Find My iPhone app (know your Apple ID) and set it to lost mode, adding a number where the finder can reach you. I have had my lost phone returned to me because of this!

Embrace the rain. Bring a poncho or raincoat, but know that your shoes WILL get wet and/or muddy. Just go with it! If it isn’t raining, but the ground is moist, your poncho can double as a tarp to keep your bum dry while sitting on the ground to give your legs a break.

Collapsible fan! I can’t tell you how much everyone around me appreciated that I brought a fan with me. And as someone who is a terrible dancer, having something to do with at least one of my hands was awesome.

Pack a coozie. You can buy a Lollapalooza coozie inside the festival for about $5, but they’re not really that great, especially for $5. If you forget yours, chances are that you can actually score one off the ground near the beer tents.

Go early and score some free swag from vendors. I’ve walked away with bandanas, a makeup bag from Alex & Ani, and friends have even had their arms tie-dyed.

Say “YES” to the lobster corndogs.

Most importantly, whether you make yourself a waterproof schedule or not, HAVE FUN!

Do you have festival hacks that I should know about? Let me know in the comments below!